


Battle Born

by Chash



Series: Miss Atomic Bomb [5]
Category: The Song of the Lioness - Tamora Pierce, Tortall - Tamora Pierce
Genre: Alan of Trebond is a jerk to his kids, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-28
Updated: 2014-06-28
Packaged: 2018-02-06 13:14:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1859352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chash/pseuds/Chash
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alanna has an eventful Thursday dealing with the fallout of Jon's outing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Battle Born

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sadcypress](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadcypress/gifts).



> I feel like this one got pretty talky! We'll be out of doing plot stuff and back to all random fluff all the time soon enough. Also I am posting this on Emily's birthday, yay Emily, yay birthday!

Daine's come to look forward to Alanna Trebond's visits with her cat Faithful--she always likes when folk adopt the animals they've brought in, and Faithful is quite a charming fellow in his own right, very handsome and vocal about everything. Alanna's nice too, a rising senior at Daine's college, always happy to get advice about her new pet. 

So it's quite a shock when Faithful's Thursday appointment to get neutered comes around and it's not Alanna who brings him in, but _Numair_ , of all people.

"What are you doing with Faithful?" she asks, gaping at him.

He puts the cat carrier down on the counter in front of Daine and lets Faithful out. The kitten comes over to butt his head against Daine, begging for affection. Numair smiles. "Alanna is--quite busy today," he says. "She asked if I might be able to bring Faithful in for her."

"Oh," says Daine, frowning. Alanna had mentioned her boyfriend a few times, and Daine had always thought it was sweet, the way she'd smile when she talked about him. But she hadn't known the boyfriend was _Numair_. "Is she alright?"

"I believe so," says Numair, frowning a little. "I didn't get many details. She just asked if I could take him."

Daine can't help rolling her eyes at that one. Numair's obliviousness is one of his charms, but he should at least know what's going on with his own girlfriend. "Well, let her know I hope everything clears up," she says. "You know Dr. Reed, don't you?"

He lights up. "Lindhall? Yes, very well. I didn't know he was her vet! It will be wonderful to see him again, it's been too long." He picks up Faithful and gives Daine the kind of smile he really shouldn't be giving her when he's got a girlfriend. "Thank you, Daine."

Daine shakes her head. Really, Alanna could do better.

*

George has trouble getting back to sleep after Alanna's early-morning phone call. She doesn't give many details, except it was her brother, there's a problem, and she'll tell him more later. It's hard to go back to bed knowing she's got something going on and not knowing what.

Numair comes by to take Faithful over to the vet around 10, and George gives up, gets dressed, and goes downstairs to help Solom with the small lunch crowd at the Dove. Solom doesn't need the help, but George needs the distraction. And Solom doesn't mind him keeping his phone at the bar with him, in case Alanna calls. So far all he's gotten is a text saying, _Arguing with Thom, I'll call as soon as I can <3_. He's concentrating on the little heart, which makes him feel a little better.

His first update doesn't come from her, though. The Dove's phone rings, and when he picks up, it's a reporter. "Anything to say about Jonathan Conte's coming out?"

It doesn't seem like a crisis situation all on its own, but he has trouble believing it's a coincidence. "Nope," he says easily. "Is this a survey or somethin'?"

"Are you aware of photographs of Conte with his boyfriend at your establishment?"

"I am now."

"There have also been rumors that Conte is involved with Thom Trebond, son of conservative CEO Alan Trebond. Can you confirm the two of them have been together at your establishment?"

"I don't really keep up with celebrity gossip."

"One of your--" the reporter starts, but George's cell buzzes on the counter, display showing _Alanna_ , so George cuts him off.

"'Scuse me, got another call comin' in I have to take," he says. "Sorry I couldn't be more help." He hangs up and grabs the phone, gesturing to Solom and picking up as he heads outside. "Alanna?"

"Hey," she says, sounding worn out. "Sorry I didn't call earlier, it's--"

"No need to explain," George says. "I was at the Dove, a reporter called. Think I've got a decent idea what's going on."

"A reporter? What did you say?"

"Told him I'm not into celebrity gossip."

Her bark of laughter is sudden and delighted, and George is so pleased he can do that for her. "I love you, that's perfect," she says, and his heart stops for a minute. She calls, "Thom, I told you he'd be fine!" He can't hear Thom's response, but Alanna laughs again.

"What are you two doing?" he asks, once he trusts his voice.

"Thom's trying to create a web presence for Alan Olau. He thinks he can convince Father that the picture wasn't either of us."

"You don't sound real optimistic."

She sighs again. "I haven't seen him in two years. As soon as he sees me, he'll know it's me."

"And he's going to see you?"

"He's on his way. He texted to say he was flying in and hasn't picked up any of Thom's calls since.."

"When's he coming?"

"A couple hours, if his plane's on time. It's such a mess. Thom is convinced I can get away with it, but--" she stops and he hears Thom saying something else. "It's not your problem!" she protests. "It's my problem. You didn't do anything wrong, it's my fault."

"You didn't do anythin' wrong either," George tells her.

"I should have realized--" she huffs. "Anyway. I'm not sure when I'll be back, if I make it at all. And in case you haven't seen, you're in the picture too."

"Do I look good?"

She laughs again. "You always look good."

"I can come over," he offers. It's killing him, hearing how tired and stressed she sounds, and him not there to help.

"It's probably a bad idea," she says.

"You've been there for hours, and I bet you two haven't eaten. I can bring you somethin'. Old Solom made chili fresh today," he wheedles.

"Okay," Alanna says. "That would be great. Just come quick, you don't want to be here when Father gets in."

"'Course I wanna be there."

He can hear her smile in her voice. "'Course you do. But Thom still wants to try to convince him that Alan Olau is a real person who isn't either of us. Having the guy who's kissing him in the picture hanging around won't really help with that."

"Now, you didn't tell me we were kissin' in the picture," he says, heading back into the Dove for food. "That's gonna be one for the scrapbook."

He's about to say goodbye when she says, "George?"

"Yeah?"

"I meant that, earlier. I love you."

George's grin practically splits his face. "I know," he says. "Love you too. I'll see you soon."

*

"That was sweet," Thom remarks.

"Shut up," says Alanna. "He's bringing us lunch, so you'd better be nice."

"Oh, so I finally get to meet the infamous George?"

Alanna rolls her eyes, going back to sit next to him. He's setting up a Facebook page for Alan Olau; this cannot possibly work. "I've only been telling you to come meet him for weeks."

Thom sobers. "I know, I'm sorry. I've been busy. I really do want to meet him."

Alanna smiles wryly. "It's a little sad this is the first time we've seen each other this summer, isn't it?"

"Crisis has a way of bringing people together."

"I _am_ sorry for dragging you into this. I should have thought about how Jon and Raoul would bring the reporters out again."

"I knew what you were doing," he says, shrugging. "But I didn't think anyone would mistake you for me." He grins. "I'm much more handsome."

"You never leave your dorm. Of course they assume you're scrawny and pale."

"Thanks."

"Anytime." She glances over at him, worrying her lip. Despite what she told George, she's not sure it's immediately obvious the picture is of her and not of Thom. She got her hair cut down to her ears last week, and Thom's has gone shaggy. He's taller than she is, but she and George are a little behind Jon and Raoul, and George is leaning down, so there's no good reference to gauge the heights in the picture. And he's blocking part of her face, too. It could easily be Thom. Her father will want to believe it's Tom.

She's still fretting when George calls to say he's downstairs, and Alanna goes down to let him in. She doesn't even have a chance to say anything before he wraps her up in his arms, and she laughs. "It's only been five hours," she tells him, hugging back anyway.

"It's been eventful," he says. He kisses her forehead. "You okay, darlin'?"

She leans against him. "I'm worried. And feeling guilty."

"You shouldn't feel guilty, you didn't know."

"I should have."

"Maybe I'm missin' somethin'," he says carefully. "But I don't see why this is as bad as all that for Thom. It's not him, and if your da doesn't believe Alan Olau's real, you can just say it's you. Jon'll back you up. So will I, come to that."

"Thom's gay," Alanna says, worrying her lip. "I think Father's always suspected it, even if he'd never say it aloud. I'm afraid if I tell him it's me, he'll think I'm just trying to protect Thom. And if he thinks Thom's gay, he'll never let him take over the company. He'll disown him too. Thom loves that company." She smiles wearily. "And he's probably hungry, we should go upstairs."

George smiles. "In a sec." He tugs her in and kisses her. "There. It's gonna be alright."

"Thanks."

"And if you want, I'll do that in front of your da too," he says, winking. "In case he doesn't believe we're together."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind." She pushes the door open, suddenly nervous. Thom and George might be like oil and water. "Hey, we have food," she tells Thom. He actually stands up and leaves his computer, which he doesn't do for just anyone. She gives him an encouraging smile.

"Nice to meet you," George says, offering his hand. "Heard a lot about you."

"Likewise," says Thom. "Thanks for bringing lunch." 

"Anythin' I can do to help." There's no table in the dorm, so the three of them just sit down on the floor. George pulls out chili and garlic bread and passes it around, giving Thom a sheepish smile. "Nothin' fancy, sorry."

"It looks great. Thanks again. And you said you already had to deal with a reporter?"

"Yeah. I guess we'll be gettin' some publicity," he muses, nudging Alanna with his foot. "Think I'll get famous?"

Alanna grins. "Yeah, you'll be too good for me in no time."

"I was thinkin' good enough," George says, but it doesn't quite land as a joke. She nudges him back, concerned, and he smiles. "We'll be okay if anyone calls the bar. I don't think Solom knows how to use the internet, so he's not gonna know anythin' about it. I think he might know Jon's someone famous, he reads tabloids at the grocery store." He pauses. "Not sure he knows Alan and Alanna are the same person, come to think of it."

"He has to!" says Alanna, laughing.

"Nah, you've only been in as Alanna a few times. He just thinks I'm datin' Alan."

"That'll help with the Alan Olau persona," Thom puts in. He's smiling faintly.

"It won't," Alanna protests. "Plenty of people know _Alanna_ is dating George Cooper. It's all going to come out in no time. I should just come clean."

"He'll disown you," Thom says flatly.

"It's amazing he hasn't already disowned me," Alanna says. She glances at George. "We've been having this argument all day, by the way. Anything you'd like to add?"

George holds his hands up. "I don't want to get in the middle," he says. "I'm just here for moral support." Alanna gives him a look, and he cracks. "But if you're askin', I think it's probably best to come clean, yeah. Not 'cause it's Alanna's idea," he adds quickly. "I can tell you're just spoilin' for a fight with your da. But if you lie to him now, neither of you's ever comin' back from that when he finds out. And unless Alanna starts livin' as Alan full time, someone's gonna find out before the buzz on Jon and Raoul dies down."

Thom glances at Alanna. "You did say he was smart."

George puffs up with pride. "You did?"

Alanna laughs and kisses him. "I did. And you are." She looks at Thom. "I'm going to tell him it's me. That I did it to spend time with Jon."

"And if he disowns you?" Thom asks sharply.

"I have money," Alanna says, shifting. "I've been working since I started college, waiting for this. Father sends money for Christmas and my birthdays, I've got that saved too. I won't be able to pay for my last year of school right away, but I'll be able to get a job and save up to finish someday."

"And if you're still in your da's good graces, you can help her," George says. "Not so if he kicks you both to the curb."

Thom sighs. "Fine. But we're going to rehearse what you say," he tells Alanna. "If I let you just go off on your own, you're going to make it worse."

"Deal," says Alanna. "You can take off whenever," she tells George.

"If you're tellin' him, won't it help if I stay?" he asks. "In case he doesn't believe you."

She looks down. "I don't really want you to meet him," she admits. "He'll be awful to you, and I'll just want to kill him. I'll have enough trouble keeping it together without him taking potshots at you."

"Okay," says George, reaching over to take her hand. Alanna glances over to smile at him weakly, and he just gives her hand a squeeze.

"You know," Thom says, into the slightly awkward silence. "He's not coming _here_. He'll call and tell us he's sending a car to bring us to his hotel or something equally douchey. And I don't have to try to populate a fake web presence. So you might as well stick around and play video games with us."

George laughs. "Well, how can I refuse an offer like that?"

*

Alanna's in the bathroom when her phone buzzes. George is playing some fighting game with Thom, which mostly means he's hitting a lot of buttons while Thom utterly destroys him. But his girlfriend's twin brother doesn't hate him, so that's a plus.

"Can you check that?" Thom asks, looking spooked. "It might be Dad."

 _Thom calls him Dad_ , George notes idly. He grabs Alanna's phone and laughs--Jon's texted _did i ruin your life :(_

"It's Jon," he tells Thom. "Guess he finally googled himself."

Thom shakes his head. "I can't believe they don't have google alerts set up, I keep telling Alanna, in this day and age--"

George holds up his hands. "Don't start with me. I don't even have a computer."

"You don't have a computer? How do you not have a computer?" Thom asks, staring. He looks genuinely upset, like he found out George is missing a kidney or something.

He shrugs. "I've never had a computer. I don't miss it." He opens up Jon's text and writes back, _It's George, I'm with her and Thom. I think shes feeling ok._

"You text like an old person," Thom remarks.

"He is an old person," Alanna says, coming back and curling up on the couch next to George. "Who are you texting?"

"Jon," he says, giving her the phone. "He's worried."

Alanna rolls her eyes. "Of course he is. You could have been a little more encouraging." 

Across the room, Thom's phone starts playing the Imperial March from Star Wars, and he and Alanna both wince.

"Your da?"

Thom goes over to grab his phone off the desk. "The car's on its way," he says. "You remember what you're saying?"

"I remember," says Alanna. She smiles at George. "Can you call Jon and talk to him?"

"Sure," he says. "Whatever you need."

"Thanks," says Alanna, giving him a kiss. "I'll call you as soon as we're done, okay?"

He smiles. "Good luck, darlin'." He glances back at Thom. "Apologies. Good luck, darlin's."

Thom snorts. "Thanks, sweetie. Come on, Alanna."

George waves them off and flops back on Thom's couch. He understands why Alanna didn't want him to go with them. He's sure her father _would_ hate him. Most fathers wouldn't be thrilled about their bright, lovely young daughters dating a twenty-six-year-old bartender who barely graduated high school.

But Alanna hates her father anyway, so who cares what he thinks? Thom seemed to have liked him.

He calls Jon; it's much more productive than moping.

"What's happening?" Jon asks. There's a lot of noise in the background.

"I thought you graduated and left the frat," he remarks. "Where are you that it's so loud at three in the afternoon?"

"I'm a guest speaker at the frat," says Jon. "I'm speaking about how to get drunk and come out via the paparazzi. How is she?"

"She and Thom just left. Their da's here to yell at them."

"Shiiiiiiiiiiit," says Jon. "God, I'm so sorry. I didn't think."

"None of us did," says George. "Alanna says I'm in one of the pictures. Do I look good?"

Jon laughs. "Very sexy, yes."

"At least there's that." He sighs and leans back, looking up at the ceiling. "She's goin' to tell her da the truth," he says. "Thinks she'll probably get disowned."

"If she gets disowned, _I'll_ take care of her," says Jon.

"You really think she'd let you?"

"No. Maybe I can make a scholarship. Anonymously."

"Sorry your da's an asshole, here's a college education."

"Exactly."

"It'd be quite competitive." He's quiet for minute, then says, "I told her she should tell him. Thom wanted to make up a whole fake internet profile for Alan Olau."

"I think you're probably right," says Jon. "Tell her she can call me if she needs anything."

"I will."

"You can too, you know," Jon adds. "Anything you need."

"Always wanted a pony," he muses.

Jon laughs. "I'll see what I can do."

*

Alan Trebond is intimidating.

Alanna's always felt this way, for as long as she can remember. She assumed everyone felt the same mixture of terror and shame when called in front of their parents, and it wasn't until she saw Jon and his father that she realized it could be any other way.

These days, she just hates him. She understands where he's coming from--it's a classic story, honestly. A man loves his wife, she dies in childbirth, and he's so stricken with grief that he throws himself into his work and ignores what's left of his family. Alanna knows how men like her father happen.

She still hates him. And she's still, after everything, a little bit afraid of him.

"I don't see why you brought Alanna, Thom," says Alan. He treats the hotel room like an office, and the two of them like two employees he needs to fire. "This is between the two of us."

Alanna glances at Thom. "It's not," she says. "It's between you and me, actually. Thom's the one who doesn't need to be here."

"I fail to see how you're involved in your brother's indiscretions."

"This morning was the first I'd seen of those indiscretions," says Thom. "I called Alanna because it was as much of a shock to me as it was to you."

"It's me in the pictures," Alanna says.

"You expect me to believe--"

"You didn't want me to be friends with Jonathan Conte," Alanna says, cutting him off. She knows where he's going with his argument, and she doesn't want to let him get there. She doesn't want Thom to have to lie about who he is. "So I went out in disguise. I thought you'd never find out."

Alan snorts. "You're protecting your brother, just like you always have."

Alanna glances at Thom, and he smiles back. She doesn't protect him; they protect each other. "No, I'm not," she says. "You can call up Solom at the Dancing Dove, he's never heard of Thom Trebond. Or Alanna Trebond, come to that. I went by Alan Olau. And I did it because Jon's my best friend."

"And the man in the picture with you? Who would you have me believe that is?"

"That's my boyfriend," says Alanna. "George."

"And your boyfriend likes that you dress up in boy's clothing?"

Alanna has to laugh. "He does, actually, yes."

"Thom, this is--to bring you sister into this like this--"

"It's so hard to believe I didn't listen to you the first time?" Alanna asks. "When you told me I couldn't be friends with him, you didn't really think I'd just roll over, did you?" She shakes her head. "You don't know us at all."

"I was on shift that night," Thom offers, like an afterthought. He's working in the IT department, helping the students and faculty still on campus over the summer, on a night shift with even worse hours than George. It's part of why Alanna never sees him. "I had calls that night, they're documented. People can lie, but Alanna couldn't take a support request to save her life."

"Thanks," says Alanna dryly. "I'm not protecting Thom. I'm taking responsibility for my own actions, sir."

"And you expect me to tell the world that it's not that my son's gay, it's that my daughter is a crossdresser? Did you consider this family's reputation at all?"

Alanna's been good. She's stuck with the script. She hasn't lost her temper. But he's just such an _asshole_. "No," she says, voice still even. "Frankly, I don't give a shit what you do."

*

George is dozing when Alanna gets back, Faithful curled up on his chest and an open book on his arm. As soon as she opens the door, Faithful jumps off him and runs over to meow at her, voicing his displeasure at her long absence. George stirs and looks up. "Hey, welcome home," he says fuzzily. 

Alanna smiles and puts down the takeout she brought, leaning down to pick up Faithful instead. "How's life without your balls?" she asks him. He yowls.

"That's how I'd feel," George says, yawning. He stands and stretches. "Did you call?"

Alanna laughs. "I did, but I guess you were asleep. Which means you got no say in what takeout I bought. It's Thai."

"That's fine. Needed the sleep more. Didn't get much this morning," he says, giving her a kiss. "How'd it go?"

"About as expected. I've shamed him and the family and he'll have no choice but to cut me out of his life if I don't change my ways."

"And you're not plannin' to."

"And I'm not plannin' to," she agrees. "I have plenty of savings, I'll be fine for a while. But I don't think I can graduate this year."

"Jon said he'd help however he could." He pauses. "I will too, but he can probably do more."

Alanna frowns. "Do we have to talk about that? I think we should talk about that."

"Talk about what?" asks George, but all it takes is a look and he deflates. "We can," he agrees.

She pulls out the cartons of Thai and brings them to the couch. George follows her, jumpy. She bumps her shoulder against his. "I like you," she says.

"You downgraded me," he teases. "You loved me earlier. What'd I do?"

"I love you," Alanna corrects. The words still feel strange in her mouth. "I don't mind that you're a bartender, or that you're not the son of anyone famous, or any of that. It doesn't matter to me. I'd like if it didn't matter to you."

"That's not it," says George. "That's not what bothers me. I do okay. You make me think about other stuff." He pokes her. "What you _weren't_ sayin' was money, but I do fine for money. Not fine enough to put you through college, but I got a lot in savin's. Don't spend much. It's--the same way Ma makes me feel. Like I'm wastin' my potential. Should be doin' more. Only I never actually felt bad about it with Ma."

"I don't want you to feel bad about it with me either."

"I know."

"If you feel like you've wasted your potential, you should do something," she says, picking a piece of chicken out of her pad thai and feeding it to Faithful. "Not 'cause I'm gonna dump you if you don't. If you just stay at the Dove, I'll be happy. But if you won't be, you should do something else."

"I'm waitin' for someone to realize I'm not good enough for you," George admits, softly.

"Let me know if anyone does," she says. "I'll set them straight."

That gets a smile out of him. "My knight in shinin' armor." He puts his arm around her. "So, what are you going to do?"

"Figure it out tomorrow. I'll have to look at my finances. See if I can maybe go part-time to finish my degree. I do want to graduate. Not sure what my father's doing. That'll be exciting. He wants to set the record straight, but he doesn't want to say I was crossdressing, and it's hard to disown your daughter without getting some bad PR."

George snorts. "My heart bleeds for him." He kisses her hair. "If that's tomorrow, what do you want to do tonight?"

She yawns and snuggles closer to him. "This. I want to do this."

"I think that can be arranged."

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Podfic of] Battle Born](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2392814) by [knight_tracer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/knight_tracer/pseuds/knight_tracer)




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